The Fall season of this year’s Call 2 Arms campaign is just getting started, which means there are even more amazing streamers that our Influencer Relations Team members are scouting and working with. This year has been one for the record books so far, with over 1200 streamers having joined the campaign so far. But one of the most amazing things about Stack Up is the friendships we make when we’re meeting new streamers that want to fundraise with us. It’s heartwarming to see so many people returning year after year to continue fundraising. One such streamer is justSpike.
Spike was first contacted by one of our Influencer Relations Team members in March of 2021 and enthusiastically responded to the inquiry. “I've always been a big advocate for mental health awareness. Every person has a different life experience and is going through a different struggle,” Spike shared.
“I've always leaned on games and the community surrounding it to help lift me up when I needed it. When Stack Up reached out, it really struck home just how down-to-earth and real Stack Up and its cause was and is. The fact that they recognize the power of gaming and its ability to help relieve stress and connect people together from all walks of life.”
Stack Up’s programs have always focused on service members, both active duty and Veteran, but we also have functions within the community that benefit civilians as well. Our main Discord is open to everyone, including civilians, so they can find gaming buddies and build out that virtual support system. The Stack Up Overwatch Program (StOP for short) is our 24/7/365 crisis intervention hotline and is also housed within the main Discord. Our volunteers are all HIPAA-certified and undergo rigorous crisis-intervention training through PsychArmor to provide support. One of the best things about this program, in particular, is that it’s also open to civilians! We also have Game Leads in our Discord that host virtual game nights playing a variety of games from ICARUS, Mechwarrior, Overwatch 2, and much more!
When asked about his favorite game, Spike responded, “It's tough to pick just one, but I'm pretty confident that one of my favorites has to be DayZ on PC. I love the immersive experience of just getting lost in a very large and detailed map with no direction or plan. You never know what's around the next corner or who you're going to meet. It's a unique gaming experience unlike any other I've had before. You truly can get lost in that game!” DayZ is an open-world zombie survival multiplayer game similar to RUST and 7 Days to Die, and can be a great game to play solo or with others!
But video games aren’t the only aspect of gaming that Stack Up uses to combat negative mental health. Board games and tabletop RPGs are also big within our community and loved by many.
“Outside of video games, I have recently started getting into Dungeons and Dragons. Just finished my first campaign, and I am addicted. [I] absolutely can't wait to play in another and try out some one-shots as well!”
Our veterans and service members also love D&D; in fact, we have two weekly campaigns that run out of our Phalanx House, a gamer’s paradise owned by Stack Up in LA County, California.
Looking back on his charity events of the past, Spike reflected, “Coming [from] a live events production background, I always love to push my own solo, self-made productions to the limits when putting together Stack Up charity streams.” If you’ve never seen one of Spike’s streams, you’re in for a treat with the different live effects he has! From different camera angles and movement to channel point redeems for changing the lights and voice filters, there’s chaos that always makes every stream an enjoyable experience. “It's a blast for me to sort out, plan, and coordinate multiple cameras, wireless mics, events, and the overall execution.”
But Spike’s favorite part of a Stack Up charity event? “I truly love the updates post-event that Stack Up sends to our community to show exactly who we've helped and how we've been able to help them out!” This is indeed something we do! Whenever a streamer and their community sponsor a Supply Crate (one of our gaming care packages sent to service members, veterans, and units stationed overseas), our Influencer Relations Team members send the name, story, and any pictures we’ve received of their sponsored crate recipient. It’s a truly powerful experience to be able to take that back to your community and see a real-life person with a face and a name that your donations directly helped. Transparency is something that’s extremely important to Stack Up, and sharing Supply Crate recipients is just one part of what we do to be transparent with our streamers and donors. If you’d like to learn more about our transparency, feel free to check out the Transparency page on our website!
To close out our conversation, I asked Spike if he had any advice for someone looking to do a charity event for the first time:
“Never underestimate your community, and never doubt yourself! Every little bit helps, big or small. You can make a difference!”
An amazing quote that really hits home. With Stack Up, our streamers are not just dollar signs because their impact is so much more than that. By doing charity streams, you help to spread the mission, information about our programs and raise overall awareness. You can’t put a price on that!
We’re so excited to see what mayhem Spike gets up to this year as he fundraises for Stack Up again. If anyone wishes to join the Call 2 Arms campaign, please feel free to reach out to any of our amazing Influencer Relations Team members or simply sign up on DonorDrive.
You can check out some of Spike's sponsored Supply Crates by hitting the tag with his name on it below and find him on his channel on Twitch.